BlackRock, the world’s largest asset manager, has launched a new Bitcoin exchange-traded product (ETP) in Europe following the wild success of its US-listed spot Bitcoin ETF, the iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT). Since its debut, the iShares Bitcoin Trust has accumulated nearly $51 billion in assets under management. BlackRock Brings Bitcoin ETP to Europe’s $13.6B ETP Market The iShares Bitcoin ETP (IBIT) started trading on March 25 on Xetra, and Euronext Paris under the “IBIT” ticker and on Euronext Amsterdam under “BTCN”. “Each ETP security corresponds to a specific amount of Bitcoin,” a prospectus on the iShares website reads. The new Bitcoin product features a temporary waiver of 10 basis points, reducing its fee to 0.15% until the end of this year. This marks BlackRock’s first major step to expand its crypto ETP product range outside the United States after the success of the spot Bitcoin ETF. Manuela Sperandeo, BlackRock’s head of iShares Product for Europe and the Middle East, told Bloomberg : “[This launch] reflects what really could be seen as a tipping point in the industry — the combination of established demand from retail investors with more professionals now really getting into the fold.” America’s leading exchange, Coinbase, will custody the digital assets for BlackRock’s new product in cold storage. Meanwhile, the Bank of New York Mellon will serve as the fund’s administrator. IBIT is currently the biggest spot Bitcoin ETF, holding roughly $50.7 billion in net assets, accounting for about 2.73% of the top crypto’s total supply. When it was rolled out in January last year, it quickly garnered investor attention and began drawing in billions of dollars in investments. While there have been ETPs linked to cryptocurrencies already trading in Europe for several years, the local market is considerably smaller compared to the U.S. — $13.6 billion versus $105 billion assets under management. The largest crypto ETP in Europe is currently managed by CoinShares International Ltd, with $1.3 billion under management and a 0.25% fee. This makes BlackRock’s Europe ETP much cheaper while the waiver is in place.
